Going on vacation with foster or adoptive children can be an enriching bonding experience for the entire family. However, even in these fun-filled moments, expectations for the trip have to be realistic. This allows trust and intimacy to build naturally as the trip unfolds and memories are made.
Benefits of Going on Vacation with Foster Children
Vacations create many opportunities for foster and adoptive children to learn, have fun, and bond with their foster or adoptive family. Some of these benefits include:
- Learning Opportunities: Going to new places and allowing your child to explore and ask questions encourages fun and enriching educational opportunities.
- Exposure to Unfamiliar Things: Wherever the destination, vacations allow children and teens to appreciate cultural differences and test the waters with new cuisine, language, clothing, transportation, and more.
- Social Skill Development: With parental supervision, children can interact with new people in public places (e.g., waiters, tour guides, lifeguards, and store employees) to build confidence in social settings and practice valuable communication skills.
- Family Bonding: When everyone in the family is constantly close (in the car, on a plane, in a hotel, etc.) during your vacation, there are many opportunities to bond, laugh and play together, share new memories, and get to know one another better.
- Rest and Relaxation: Everyone deserves a break, from CEOs to schoolchildren and everyone in between. A vacation can relieve stressors that foster children generally face, especially during transitional periods.
Legal Limitations and Permissions
Whether you’re fostering to adopt or serving as a temporary placement, there are a few legal protocols to consider when taking a foster child or teen on vacation.
When fostering a child, you are a temporary guardian; sometimes, this restricts traveling together. While you’re still in the process of planning your vacation, reach out to the advocate or social worker overseeing your placement to see what travel permissions you have.
Individual Child Considerations
Is your child ready to travel? Some children are eager to explore, while others cling to the comfort of their home base. Foster kids who need a sense of constancy to feel safe often hesitate to leave their comfort zone; however, with communication and understanding, you can help them adapt to the situation with reassurance and accommodation.
Try to involve as much of your usual routine as you can: Bring along comfort items (like a stuffed animal or blanket), plan to accomodate disability or other needs in advance, and be prepared to de-escalate on the go in case your attempts to avoid triggers aren’t 100 percent successful.
Our Home Away from Home
At the Alabama Free Will Baptist Children’s Home, we strive to give our children and teens a Christ-centered home that loves and cares for them. Many of our house families go on vacation each year during the summer, spending quality time and making memories together.
As a non-profit organization, we rely on donations to invest in the lives of our children and teens and give them opportunities for growth, development, and enrichment. If you are willing and able, please help support our Home here.